Determined to press on with reforms
In this interview with Kathimerini (conducted in two parts, one before the fires and one after), Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis talked about a wide range of issues, including his government’s social security reforms. Publication of that interview, scheduled for August 26, was postponed due to the emergency situation in the country. In the second interview conducted during this past week, the prime minister spoke about how those critical 72 hours last weekend changed both him and his plans for vital sectors of Greek society. Did the 72 hours of crisis change you? In many ways. No one could ever be the same after events like those. Emotion alternates with reason, which forces you to be calm and self-composed. The logical conclusions and hard lessons learned in those hours have strengthened my certainty that the reforms for a more modern State that acts faster, is more functional and reliable, must go ahead at a deeper level. If you were an ordinary citizen would you have been satisfied with the State’s effectiveness during the fires? Is there a question of attributing blame? No one can be satisfied when human lives are lost. Particularly when someone – like myself – is particularly reserved about expressing satisfaction. The crucial question is whether, under the given conditions, the State did the best it could to deal with this situation that was unprecedented in its extent and magnitude. I say with all my heart that the people who threw themselves into the battle with the flames, firefighters on the ground, pilots of the firefighting aircraft, soldiers, police officers, local authorities and volunteers, all surpassed themselves. They put their lives at risk and gave their all, going without sleep to fight the fires, save lives and try and stop the fires. I am afraid that we are wrong to make sweeping generalizations that do not do them justice and that certainly does nothing to change things for the better. At the moment do you have any idea as to whether there were deliberate acts of arson and if so, who organized them? There are obvious questions that I am sure most Greeks are asking. So many fires, at the same time and in so many different areas cannot be a coincidence. The events, the testimony given by on-the-spot witnesses and evidence found by the police, indicate premeditated acts. So far there have been dozens of arrests and the investigation is continuing. The State is making every possible effort to find and punish, as soon as possible, those who deliberately created this situation. People are very angry about the fires. Could you as the government commit yourselves to demolishing buildings seen to have been constructed on areas of forest that have been burnt over the past 10 years? My political commitment is a given. The crucial questions are the legal and judicial complications. Let me give you a simple example. Your newspaper has for some time been drawing attention to illegal quarries. It has taken us two years to be able to do something about it. And I must tell you – this is the first time I have said it – that I got involved personally, because when a serious newspaper raises such an issue, it bothers me to learn that the ministries – Public Works and Development – have gone ahead but that through various legal, judicial methods the solution had been delayed for two years. The political will is absolute and a given. The crucial question is how we can deal with the legal, or rather legalistic methods being used to avoid the issue. The opposition has called for a meeting of political party leaders. Could this help create an image of unity? What interests me at this moment are specific measures with rapid results. I am not interested in making impressions, particularly when these are accompanied by polarization, tension and sweeping generalizations. My own concern, my own duty at this difficult time is to achieve the goal of restoration, of reconstruction. United, Greeks will succeed. Is there anything that stands out in your mind from your recent experiences? The terror in people’s eyes. The moment when you realize that all of us have a duty to be far more decisive about what we need to change in order for our country to get ahead. Some believe that the cost of the measures to provide emergency support for the fire victims and the economic effects of the disaster will be too much of a burden for the next budget. Is there any likelihood of emergency (economic) measures? No, there will be no such measures because the fiscal situation is healthy. This was also demonstrated by the European Union recently when it approved the lifting of the Excessive Deficit Procedure for Greece. At the moment the deficit is about 2.6 percent. The Greek economy’s growth rate is one of the highest in the European Union. There is no doubt that these unprecedented, widespread fires will have major economic repercussions on the affected prefectures. However, the knock-on effects on the economy as a whole are limited and under control. The economy’s productive base remains strong. Our economy is creating new jobs. In other words, the progress we have made in recent years at the level of fiscal improvement is not at risk.
